Cynthia Villar: Gov't must not pursue reclamation projects as it magnifies climate change effects

The government should not push through with reclamation activities as this type of project magnifies the effects of climate change in the Philippines, Senator Cynthia Villar said Monday.

"I believe that our government should rethink and not pursue reclamation activities that earnestly threaten our already vulnerable coastal communities and habitats, intensifies flooding and magnifies soil liquefaction," said Villar, chairperson of the Senate Environment and Natural Resources Committee, in a recorded speech for the Climate Investment Forum 2022.

"We should not go with our business-as-usual attitude as we face a climate emergency. We are all called to do our part to counter the ill effects of climate change," she added.

Villar likewise urged the public to take climate change seriously as its effects are "more pronounced and felt" in the Philippines.

The government should rally the communities and take appropriate strategies to make the Philippines climate-resilient, she added.

In the latest World Risk Index report, the Philippines has the highest disaster risk among 193 countries around the world.

The Philippines scored high in its exposure, vulnerability, susceptibility, lack of coping capacities, and lack of adaptive capacities in the face of disasters.

During the Senate plenary debates on the 2023 budget, Senator Joel Villanueva raised the information from scientists and fisherfolk groups which claims that there are around 187 reclamation projects all over the country.

Villar, who sponsored the DENR's budget in the Senate, said there are 19 reclamation projects in Manila Bay, two in Cebu and two in Samar. However, there was no data from other regions. -- BAP, GMA Integrated News